The Never Ending (Moving) Story

“When efforts that are wisely executed, the situation and condition don’t affect the performance.” ― A.Patel

The long road less traveled on our Big Move with the Animal Menagerie

We have arrived in California! Finally. 1.1 humans, 3.0 felines, 0.1 canine, 0.0.8 plants, and 0.0.2 vehicles made it safely from the east coast to the west coast! It only took us a MONTH to move out of our home in VA, drive across the country, and move into our home here in Cali, but we are here. And everyone is doing very well.

We must have had Falkor with us in spirit on our move out here because we had a lot of luck, magic, and miracles along the road less traveled. We also had a lot of patience, gratitude, and very successful animal menagerie management tools and techniques at play.

This is going to be a quick post, because we have been going nonstop since we got here, and we still have much more to do. But I wanted to at least update my readers because you are dear to me. Plus with all that is going down in the world, I wanted to share some Love Light.

The moving company packed up our household goods (everything) out of our home, then moved it all into storage (unbeknownst to us for several weeks).

I lost my voice on Day One of The Drive. Then that evening I had full blown flu-like symptoms.

Knox Zydeco decided that riding in a car was no longer an option for him anymore. In fact, it was one of the most terrifying experiences of his life (We discovered this within minutes of leaving our temporary hotel in VA and setting out on the road.)

One of our cars broke down at 10:30 at night while driving through the Texas desert.

We lived out of 8 different hotels across the country for 24 days.

Once we arrived in Cali the movers took another 8 days to get here so we stayed in another hotel for a week.

Good times.

But that’s not where the seemingly never-ending moving story ends. There’s more. If you have been following this blog, then you know that I always focus on the positive in life and especially with our animal companions.

So… Here’s the abbreviated GOOD News from our Big Move:

Our feline veterinarian was absolutely incredible at immediately responding to and diagnosing Knox’s Full-On-Freak-Out while we were in transit.

We now know how incredibly helpful (and safe) the right medications can be for fearful cats. And we learned that these are the same meds that people are prescribed for panic attacks and anxiety! (more to come on this important topic ).

I learned why one should never have a deep healing acupuncture session prior to moving across country (hence the flu-like symptoms).

Hocus Pocus had zero aggression, frustration or fear reactivity issues. I am so proud of her!

Our senior kitty boys were total rock stars; Beaux and Albert both did exceptionally well on the long 11 hour drives each day. And King Albert’s health challenges did not cause him any noticeable duress.

My animal communication skills were put to the test and I passed with flying colors.

We all grew closer together during this trial.

Everyone did exceptionally well, considering how hard it was on all of us for such a long time.

They have all settled into our new home and are far exceeding what I thought they were capable of.

Everyone is thriving!

It’s All Been Worth the Time and Effort!

All of the techniques, tools, and behavior modification methods I have learned over the years of being an animal trainer, pet parent, and animal behavior consultant came into play during this long transition. The methods I share with you and use with my clients were all put to the test. Including some I had never tried before! They were such a huge success.

All of my efforts have paid off. What I thought was impossible was possible. I didn’t believe the cats or canine were capable of coping. I had anticipated the worst, but each of them found their way to SHINE during a very difficult and long process. Each of them adjusted, adapted, and They proved all of us wrong. They were total champs. At times they even seemed to understand that we were all in this together.

I am still in awe of them.

But that’s all I am going to write about for now. In the near future I will be sharing with you how I was able to create and maintain safety, peace, and harmony during the Long Haul with each of the animals. I will also share how we have been able to help each of them to settle into our new dojo with flying colors (and with no flying fur!). I can’t wait to tell you all about everything that’s working, and the new tools I have discovered. These tips and techniques will make such a huge difference for you and your companion animals.

Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.-Robert Collier

In Other News

I hope those of you in the U.S. and Canada enjoyed (and survived) the recent independence holidays. We are still experiencing bomb-like-fireworks nightly here, so we are continuing to help the animals cope with that. If you need some suggestions to help your pets with post-Independence day celebrations, check out this post and this one as well.

If you were affected by the tragic events in Orlando (my hometown), my heart goes out to you. Our friends and family still live there, so this really hit home for us. My mother was able to send her team of therapy dogs to help the first responders from that event. You can read about that here.Now they are visiting with the Orlando community as their team is able, helping so many to heal.

Also, if you or anyone you know are either a HSP or an Empath, this Instagram page might be helpful. As we move forward in the world, and as I continue to share here, I will spread as much love and light as I can. With all of the drama, anger, and sadness we are witnessing unfolding in the world right now, we need more love. We must uplift and love one another. When the world appears dark, we need to be The Light. Remember that our animal companions are such perfect teachers for this. They are pure unconditional love.

“There are darknesses in life and there are lights, and you are one of the lights, the light of all lights.” ― Bram Stoker, Dracula

OH! Before I go, I wanted to share one more inspiring thing with you. Here’s the view from our new backyard. Gah! Can you smell the salt air and feel the sand between your toes??

Well, I am off the watch tonight’s sunset. So Much love to you and yours!

“May it be a light to you in dark places, when all other lights go out.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

What Do You Want to Explore?

Stay Inspired!

About Conscious Companion

I Am a retired zoologist, professional animal behavior consultant, and published author. Enhancing the human-animal bond and supporting conservation are two of my greatest passions. I am also an Intuitive Empath and an Energy Healing Practitioner who utilizes Light Language for healing. Through blending science and spiritual truths, I enjoy inspiring, uplifting educating and unifying others. As my Cherokee heritage teaches, We Are One!